First of all, let me start with saying how when I thought about sharing this DIY project on my blog, I knew how messy my kitchen currently is from all of my recent candle making and felt like I needed to thoroughly clean it before taking any photos that would be shared with the world.

Then I realized that I don’t care if you want to judge me because of my wax covered kitchen and that if I cleaned up beforehand, I wouldn’t be being honest with you guys because; 1. My life and tiny apartment are pure chaos all the time thanks to my constant diy projects and having a toddler. 2. You should be aware what you are getting yourself into when you decide to do this specific project.

It is possible to make this project less messy, but I’ve been pouring these candles while running in and out of the kitchen to tend to Harper, so it got messy REALLY fast around here!

So, here is what I am showing you how to make:

They are all natural hand poured soy candles scented with pure essential oils. Because they are scented with pure essential oils, they are allergy friendly to most people who are usually smelly candle sensitive. (scentsitive lol) <— I couldn't resist.

I purchased everything that I needed for this project through amazon prime, but you can find everything you need at michael's and the oils from wholefoods.

You will need:
A microwave and…
1. Soy wax flakes. They sell these at almost every craft store, but Milliard brand off of amazon was the best price for a 10 pound bag. It takes a little less than a pound of flakes to make 1 pint size candle. $25 per 10 pound bag which will make you anywhere from 10-15 large pint size candles.
2. Wicks. I got candlescience brand medium natural wicks from amazon. It was around $8 for 8 dozen 6 inch wicks.
3. mason jars. I really like the wide mouth pint size jars which are cheapest at target or a craft store that accepts coupons, but amazon also has these. They come in a pack of 12 for around $12-16 per pack.
4. Skewers. I used these to stir the wax, hold the wicks in place, and to curl my wicks. I already had these at home but you can buy them anywhere or use chopsticks.
5. Toppers. I already had red sugar and dried lavender on hand. These aren’t necessary, but since I’m gifting mine I wanted them to look extra cute.
6. 2 cup oven safe glass measuring cup. I got mine on amazon and plan to only use it for candles since it is now a waxy mess. I bought anchor brand for around $11.
7. Essential Oils. I tried 3 different brands during this project and NOW brand oils were my favorite. They sell them at wholefoods or on amazon for cheaper for larger bottles. Prices depend on how large of a bottle you want and what scents. The 4 oz sizes I got were $11-15 per bottle and will last a long time. You can use more expensive oils if you’d like but I didn’t find it necessary since you aren’t rubbing these on your skin or swallowing them. I made peppermint candles, “just relax” which is peppermint, lavender, and eucalyptus, and lemon peppermint. I was very pleased with all of these scent combinations.

So, let’s get started!

First of all, fill your measuring cup to the brim with wax flakes, the height will shrink in half or lower when melted. I used a plastic cup to fill my glass measuring cup.

Put the measuring cup in your microwave and heat on high. Every microwave is different, but I found that 2 minutes was a good time to melt most of the flakes. It’s ok if not every single flake melts, you can mix up the wax and melt the leftover flakes when you take the measuring cup out of the microwave. Watch carefully while microwaving your wax and make sure you stop it when the wax is melted. You do not want to overheat your wax. Make sure you use something to protect your hand when removing the wax, the handle gets very hot!!!!

Add more flakes to your melted and mixed wax and heat your wax again. I typically heated my second dose of flakes for 1-1.5 minutes instead of 2. When you remove the measuring cup mix well.

Now, pour just enough hot wax into your jars to cover the bottoms. Let this wax sit for a few minutes until you start to see it turn, and the place your wicks in the center of the jar’s bottom.

Let those wicks sit for at least 5 minutes until the wax looks hard.

Fill your measuring cup back up and repeat the first steps until you have a full cup of melted wax. When you do, let your wax sit and cool for about 15 minutes. I could usually tell it was ready by the handle being cool to the touch, or the wax was starting to get very slightly cloudy. When this happens, it is finally time to scent your wax.

You DO NOT want to scent your wax while it is too hot or you will waste a lot of essential oil because the high heat just makes the scent evaporate. When you are ready to add the oils, I found these combinations to work well: for “just relax” 10 drops of each: peppermint, lavender, and eucalyptus. For lemon and peppermint, I did 10 drops of each. For just peppermint, 15-20 drops of peppermint to start. You can add more if you’d like it stronger.

Stir the oils into the wax very well, and now you are ready to pour your wax into the mason jar. Pour the wax slowly to avoid spilling, and fill your candles to right where the lid of the jar ends when screwed on. DO NOT pour the small amount of wax that is left in the measuring cup into another jar. If you do this, it will harden and not blend with the rest of the wax you pour in next and you will get weird lines in your candle. Trust me, I have a lot of uglies that I will be keeping for myself because of this. Fill your measuring cup back up on top of the unused melted wax and start over for your next candle.

Now, set your wick in the center and pull it up straight gently and use two skewers on each side of the wick to hold it in place while the wax hardens.

If you aren’t planning on using any toppers, then you are finished with your first candle!

If you are planning on topping your candles, then let your candle sit with the skewers holding the wick for about 15-20 minutes. When then top of your candle is still slightly melted but starting to harden, it is time to remove the skewers and top it with your sugar or sprinkles or lavender or citrus zest, or whatever you choose.

The hardest part is over! You did it! You made your own all natural candle! Now repeat all of these steps above until you have made as many as you desire, or wait for the one candle you made to harden. You will need to wait at least 24 hours before you burn it. Trim your wick to 1/4 an inch before burning it. I curled my wicks, but they will also need to be trimmed before burning.

I hope you enjoyed my DIY project. I can’t wait to see what you make. Connect with me on Instagram if you liked this post @saramaslyn and if you have any questions or comments, feel free to comment below.